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The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from former coal company executive Don Blankenship, who argued that major news outlets defamed him by calling him a “felon.” WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court rejected an appeal Tuesday from former coal executive Don Blankenship, who argued that major news outlets defamed him by calling him a “felon.” The justices left in place an appellate ruling against Blankenship, the former CEO of Massey Energy. He served a year in prison on a misdemeanor charge after he was found guilty of conspiring to violate safety standards at a West Virginia mine before an explosion in 2010 that killed 29 men. Justice Clarence Thomas, while agreeing with the court's action Tuesday, repeated his call for the court to overturn its landmark 1964 libel ruling in New York Times v. Sullivan. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s determination that CNN, Fox News and 14 other outlets sued by Blankenship did not act with “actual malice” amid cove...

A California appeals court says Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten should be released from prison on parole LOS ANGELES -- A California appeals court said Tuesday that Leslie Van Houten, who participated in two killings at the direction of cult leader Charles Manson in 1969, should be released from prison on parole. The appellate court’s ruling reverses an earlier decision by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who rejected parole for Van Houten in 2020. She has been recommended for parole five times since 2016. All of those recommendations were rejected by either Newsom or former California Gov. Jerry Brown. Newsom could request that California Attorney General Rob Bonta petition the California Supreme Court to stop her release. Bonta's office referred questions to Newsom's office, which didn't respond to queries about possible next steps. Van Houten, now in her 70s, is serving a life sentence for helping Manson and other fol lower s kill Leno LaBianca, a grocer in Los Angeles, an...